(Newser)
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A Spanish judge issued an international arrest warrant on Friday for former members of the Catalan Cabinet who were last seen in Brussels, including the ousted separatist leader Carles Puigdemont, who said he was prepared to run for his old job even while battling extradition in Belgium. The AP reports the National Court judge filed the request with the Belgian prosecutor to detain Puigdemont and his four aides, and issued separate international search and arrest warrants to alert Interpol in case they flee Belgium. Puigdemont's Belgian lawyer has said his client will fight extradition to Spain without seeking political asylum. Belgian federal prosecutors said they had received the arrest warrant and could question Puigdemont in coming days.

Puigdemont and the four others are being sought for five different crimes, including rebellion, sedition, and embezzlement in a Spanish investigation into their roles in pushing for secession for Catalonia. The officials flew to Brussels after Spanish authorities removed Puigdemont and his Cabinet from office on Saturday for declaring independence for Catalonia. The Spanish government has also called an early regional election for Dec. 21. Puigdemont told Belgian state broadcaster that he was in Belgium "ready to be a candidate" in the early polls and because he had lost faith in the Spanish justice system. "We can run a campaign anywhere because we're in a globalized world," he said.

EU & The Catalan Independent State : The best way is the people of Catalonia don't want to implicate the Spain and what Spain owes IMF, it is not doing good for Spain to pressure their Hegemony to dominate Catalan democracy freedom what they want to vote for their Catalan administration and their own Catalan sovereignty and their domestic taxation to run their Catalan government budget. Let Catalonia be an Independent State as same as EU's Scotland Independence to stay inside Euro-zone map of one single EU's free trade-market but not UK's Brexit wants to quit.

Chris Farley

Nov 4, 2017 7:56 AM CDT

now it would be news If he was hiding in Russia.. But outside that, this is just more BS.

Endymion

Nov 3, 2017 7:11 PM CDT

Yeah, grab them and lock them up....that'll REALLY show people why they should want to be part of Spain